My Vintage Radio Collection

[decojoe67]

This is a light tan 1959 Philco H765 space-age clock radio. You've heard of the Philco swivel-top Predicta's TV's, well this is a swivel topped "Predicta" radio! These are often found with the clock head damaged and cracked. This one is very nice. The left thumbwheel is the volume, right is tuning which is geared down for fine tuning, all other controls are on the top pushbuttons. It sounds pretty good and is an interest piece next to my 1959 Philco Predicta "Debutante".

 

[decojoe67]

Here's is the tiniest 5-tube radio you'll find. It's a 1947 Emerson 540 "Emersonette" sub-miniature radio. I put a 1959 transistor radio next to it to show how small it is. You can hold it in your palm. This one is in the typical brown bakelite, but they came in a few colors too. Those are very rare. This one is rare enough not to have any damage. The black "acorn" knobs are original to the set. They even put a dial lamp in it! Adorable little set.

 

[Edward Reed]

Here's is the tiniest 5-tube radio you'll find. It's a 1947 Emerson 540 "Emersonette" sub-miniature radio. I put a 1959 transistor radio next to it to show how small it is. You can hold it in your palm. This one is in the typical brown bakelite, but they came in a few colors too. Those are very rare. This one is rare enough not to have any damage. The black "acorn" knobs are original to the set. They even put a dial lamp in it! Adorable little set.
View attachment 233551

now that is really nice! had no idea they made such a tiny one!

 

[decojoe67]

now that is really nice! had no idea they made such a tiny one!

Thanks. The cabinet is about 3" deep. It uses 5 of the new, at the time, miniature tubes. Everything is really crammed in.

 

[decojoe67]

Here is a 1939 DeWald radio. Model number unknown. It has very nice details including the angled back waterfall cabinet, airplane dial with green tuning eye, and bold grill slats. It's a fairly slender light set, but of nice quality and performance. It's in superb original condition too.

 

[Edward Reed]

Here is a 1939 DeWald radio. Model number unknown. It has very nice details including the angled back waterfall cabinet, airplane dial with green tuning eye, and bold grill slats. It's a fairly slender light set, but of nice quality and performance. It's in superb original condition too.
View attachment 234825

wow! thats gorgeous! how do you find such wonderful radio treasures? that one looks like it was never used!

 

[decojoe67]

wow! thats gorgeous! how do you find such wonderful radio treasures? that one looks like it was never used!

Thank you Ed. That's actually the reason I acquired it. I bought this one from a high-end radio collector who had to buy several radios just to get this one. It seems it was in collectors hands for many years, so it's very well preserved and very clean in and out. I've been in this hobby for 40 years, since I was a little kid, and have many sources all over the US for these old sets.

 

[decojoe67]

Here's an impulse buy from a local collector friend. It's a 1954 Westinghouse 417T5 "mid-century" designed slender tabletop radio. 1930's art-deco is my favorite, but these screaming '50's space-age sets are very cool too. With the bright clear lucite gold-reverse-painted front panel contrasted by the rich maroon plastic cabinet, "hairpin" wire legs back and front, and large half clear lucite dial, it's really a piece of eye-candy. You have to see sets like these in person to really appreciate them. It's a good player too! 5 tubes with a copper chassis and fully recapped

 

[Edward Reed]

Here's an impulse buy from a local collector friend. It's a 1954 Westinghouse 417T5 "mid-century" designed slender tabletop radio. 1930's art-deco is my favorite, but these screaming '50's space-age sets are very cool too. With the bright clear lucite gold-reverse-painted front panel contrasted by the rich maroon plastic cabinet, "hairpin" wire legs back and front, and large half clear lucite dial, it's really a piece of eye-candy. You have to see sets like these in person to really appreciate them. It's a good player too! 5 tubes with a copper chassis and fully recapped View attachment 235493

oh yes! another winner! I agree... while I am partial to everything 30s and 40s the "sci-fi" look of the 50s is really visually appealing and has great aesthetics. nice one!

 

[decojoe67]

Here's a popular postwar bakelite radio, the 1946 Stromberg-Carlson 1500-H 6-tube bakelite radio. The difference with this one is it's NOS. It was only recently taken out of it's original shipping box. It has all it's original paperwork. The set is new in and out with a few rub marks from being boxed-up for 64 years. Amazing the original caps looks like new so I decided to slowly power it up on the Variac. It came on playing perfectly! Not an everyday user as-is, but I'm leaving it original and will play it from time to time.
I like the streamline design and the curved dial. Another version has a flat glass dial.

 

[Edward Reed]

Here's a popular postwar bakelite radio, the 1946 Stromberg-Carlson 1500-H 6-tube bakelite radio. The difference with this one is it's NOS. It was only recently taken out of it's original shipping box. It has all it's original paperwork. The set is new in and out with a few rub marks from being boxed-up for 64 years. Amazing the original caps looks like new so I decided to slowly power it up on the Variac. It came on playing perfectly! Not an everyday user as-is, but I'm leaving it original and will play it from time to time.
I like the streamline design and the curved dial. Another version has a flat glass dial.
View attachment 239546

Holy moses! another winner and NOS with original papers!!! what an amazing find! a real time traveling time capsule! I love that you were able to power it up with all its original components still intact and it worked! this is outstanding!

 

[decojoe67]

Thank you Ed. From the side the set is really streamlined. I like too how the dial pointer is a translucent red tab that matches the curve of the dial window. The metal on the chassis shimmers like brand new. Not a spec of dust ever settled on it! I never had such an NOS radio.

 

[Edward Reed]

Thank you Ed. From the side the set is really streamlined. I like too how the dial pointer is a translucent red tab that matches the curve of the dial window. The metal on the chassis shimmers like brand new. Not a spec of dust ever settled on it! I never had such an NOS radio.

well, it most certainly found its way to the right person! the perfect home! its got to feel like a time capsule event item!

 

[decojoe67]

Thank you Ed. I admire these sets like great paintings or sculpture. I love to see how inventive designers were with art-deco/streamline-modern/machine-age design. Next to automobiles and jukeboxes, radios are the best examples of this styling trend - and much more affordable! LOL

 

[decojoe67]

Here's a 1941 Coronado C5G14 "Jewel" radio. What makes this radio special is how small it is. I put my hand in the photo to illustrate that. It was a cheapie bakelite 5-tuber that does not even have a dial lamp. These were sold under a several names through the the post-war years, but this pre-war version has the nice sunburst gold and red dial. The dial is extended towards the front-center of the speaker on a metal arm and the tuner is a odd small plunger type under the chassis. They're often found on these early little radios and can be problematic. This one work very well.

 

[Edward Reed]

really cool! an an ingenious design.. and so tiny too!

 

[decojoe67]

Thank you Ed. It's funny how this one is such a cheapie set in the day, but now it's a little deco piece of art! A cute set. I just wish it had a dial lamp.

 

[decojoe67]

Here's a 1939 Zenith bakelite 6D-311 radio with the original box and instruction sheet. I bought it only by a photo and thought it was a brown model. When I got it I saw that it was a white painted model that someone stripped, yet left the white interior and original back. As expected, the bakelite color was black. I decided to repaint the set ivory. It had been completely recapped and plays like new. The chassis is like new too. I can only assume that the original paint on the top of the set was really bad and someone just decided to have an ebony model. I have the 6D-315 "Wavemagnet" with the rear gold extension, in brown bakelite, so this is a nice addition. These are Zenith's first bakelite sets and a very good example of streamline-modern design.

 

[Edward Reed]

Here's a 1939 Zenith bakelite 6D-311 radio with the original box and instruction sheet. I bought it only by a photo and thought it was a brown model. When I got it I saw that it was a white painted model that someone stripped, yet left the white interior and original back. As expected, the bakelite color was black. I decided to repaint the set ivory. It had been completely recapped and plays like new. The chassis is like new too. I can only assume that the original paint on the top of the set was really bad and someone just decided to have an ebony model. I have the 6D-315 "Wavemagnet" with the rear gold extension, in brown bakelite, so this is a nice addition. These are Zenith's first bakelite sets and a very good example of streamline-modern design.
View attachment 241193

oh that is really unique now! the ivory works for it! I think a better choice really than white. ivory is more "antique" yet stylish... nice that even though it was stripped the bakelite remained in good condition! doesn't get better than having their first bakelite sets with the original box and instruction sheets. usually the sheets are missing for most things anyway.

 

[decojoe67]

Thank you Ed. I actually wish I could've found an even warmer ivory tone. If you look at white sets from the '30's-'50's it's often basically light beige or even soft gray. The last thing you want to use is pure white! It looks cold and antiseptic. Likely the previous owner soaked the cabinet in a solvent because there wasn't a scratch on it. Many people that strip these sets like the ebony look which did look pretty good. Literature actually shows that ebony was indeed an option, but, like with ivory, painted only. This one had original white spray inside and white remnants in all the tight spaces including the bottom screw holes. The original back is white too.